Product: Applause GTX-33
Price Paid: US $385.00
Submitted
07/08/2002
at
01:02pm
by
Trei Smith
Email: smithtn at oge<dot>com
Features
:
8
Custom Made: 1988 in Korea and Purchased in 1988 by me.
Frets: 24 (filed them down in 1987 because they were starting to get divits from the strings).
One volume knob and one tone control knob. Has individual controls for the pickups.
3 Pickups (Stock - Two single coil and one double "KMD" pickups - I know I thought they made amps.)s/s/h.
Passive Electronics
Body Wood: Maple
Neck Wood: Maple
Finish: Cool red/blue/purple and black cracked earth pattern. Painted and clear coated. Has light chips in the body but nothing that can't be filled.
Body Style: Strat
Has a fine tunable bridge(acheived by using a small AlanWrench and the tunning screws), and a factory trem bar. (Also made by "KMD")
The neck is a custom made thin neck style with jumbo frets. The Nut is a locking nut. Reverse,Painted head stock with a rose wood fretboard. Was laminated when bought but I sanded the finish off.
When purchased the guitar came with a felt case with four gold latches, one had a lock and key, and name tag.
Sound
:
9
It seems to suit my style well. I play everything from country to death-speed metal. It is one of the most versital guitars I've ever owned.
I use a BOSS 80 effects processor with a Dunlap/Hendrix wah on a Crate Vodoo 60 for live play and I run an analog patch on an AMD Athelon 2.1 gig pc with stero surround sound for studio recording.
It was starting to get string rattle in the sixth string (Low E). To fix this I put a small piece of a budwiser label under the string on the fine tuning seat for the temblo. I've noticed this has helped to deepen the base for the guitar making it great for playing POD or Korn tunes. This guitar is very flexible. You can get that nice country twang if you set the strings with the D'Darrio light 8mm strings or get a deep tone with the heavier 10's and make the Low E about a 50. By nature this guitar does very well on the bright side, pretty good on the mid and okay for bassy stuff. It makes a decent rythm guitar for country and a better lead for the speed metal of the 80's.
I don't like how easily it pulls out of tune when the nut is not locked down. (It pulls way flat.) It makes a fast string changes during a performance very difficult. (Get a back up strat and roadie who can tune a guitar.)
Action, Fit, & Finish
:
7
The setup was very good for a beginning guitar player. The one I was was custom built for me. I had the action set very low when I ordered it. after about 12 years the neck was getting a slight bow (due to improper storage on my part) so I had to steam the neck and wieght straighten it. (Takes about 3 months.) When I got it I just played on it so the pickups were never an issue until someone told me to lower them and it would sound better (they were right).
The only real problem with the guitar is the cramped space for the electrics and the short wires. In 2000 I had to have the thing totally rewired, I had been resoldiering the connections to the volume and the output jack for about 5 years. The parts for the temblo are now overly oxidized, but that's after 14 years of indoor and outdoor use so I think they stood the test of time pretty well.
Reliability/Durability
:
10
I can answer this part as one answer. I have used it without a backup for 10 years and it only let me down once. It was raining and I got electrocuted, I dropped it on the plug and the plug broke off inside the output jack. My fault, we should have accepted the rain delay.
Customer Support
:
5
There is no factory support anymore, but I can tell anyone who needs parts you can contact "Gardner Music" in Woodward, Oklahoma (USA) they still have a life line for original parts.
Overall Rating
:
10
I have been playing for 20 years. I own an Alverez "Yari" classical guitart, a peavey falcon, lotus les paul knock-off and a crate voodoo 60 amp with a boss 80 effects processor.
If it were stolen I'm not sure I could ever find one like this so I'd most likely make my next one.
The thing I love most is that unlike my ex-wife it has never left my side. It's reliable and makes a nice conversation piece.
My favorite feature was the paint job, I've never found one quite like it.
I wish I had installed locking neckstrap studs so I wouldn't have dropped it and poly-urithane water proof coating so I wouldn't have gotten' shocked when it got wet.
I hope that every guitar player can find a cheap guitar that plays well and that they love. I've owned expensive Ibenze, Ovation and Fender guitars and none have lasted a fraction of the time that this one has.
